Appliances

With plenty of sunny days still ahead – but with summer vacation nearing its sunset for kids and grandkids – here’s a fun, inexpensive and educational project to do with the young people in your life during the dog days of summer. Build a simple solar oven (aka a “solar cooker”) from repurposed household items. It will not only amaze and amuse kids of all ages, but it really works. And it will save you money and keep the heat out …

What home appliance costs the most to run, and when should it be replaced with a newer model? We’ll get to this trick question in a minute. If saving money on your monthly bills interests you, along with helping the environment, check out 18 Ways to Save on Utilities. Here are a couple of my favorites. Let it hang out: With dryers costing about $85 annually to operate on average, you can save by using a drying rack (usually less …